Iran’s clerical supreme leader on 20 March said the Islamic Republic would destroy the Israeli cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa if it came under attack from the Jewish state. “At times the officials of the Zionist regime (Israel) threaten to launch a military invasion but they themselves know that if they make the slightest mistake the Islamic Republic will raze Tel Aviv and Haifa to the ground,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in an address to mark the Iranian new year.
In his televised speech, Khamenei said Iran’s struggles over the past year against international sanctions imposed over its nuclear programme resembled a battle and that its enemies had confessed to trying to “cripple the Iranian nation.” “What happened last year, we need to learn a lesson,” he said, alluding to what he described as Iran’s significant scientific and military advances. “This vibrant nation will never be brought to its knees.” Khamenei also called for Iran’s “natural right” to enrich uranium for nuclear energy to be recognised by the world. Western powers have refused, saying Iran has hidden nuclear work from UN inspectors and stonewalled their investigations.